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burger wars

How much would you pay for a burger?

Expensive burgers are all the rage in New York now, and chefs are in an all out burger war to create the most mouth watering and, seemingly, the most expensive burger.

At $41, the Kobe burger at the Old Homestead steakhouse was the priciest cow sandwich in NY, until db Bistro Moderne (what a snobby name for a steakhouse) unvieled its $50 Burger Royale, which comes with shaved truffles.

These are not burgers. They are overpriced steak sandwiches. If I'm going to throw down 50 bucks for some meat, its not going to come on a bun with a side of fries. Hell, I could get a tasty filet mignon smothered with sauteed mushrooms and onions an nice glass of wine for less than the price of a Kobe burger.

Real burgers come from diners. They cost about 7 dollars and they are served on an oversized sesame seed bun with lettuce, tomatoes, onion rings and fries. If you're feeling daring, you add some cheese and bacon. Maybe a side of brown gravy for the fries. Add a chocolate egg cream to the mix and you've got the food of the gods right there in front of you for less than ten dollars. And, if you're in the proper kind of diner, you're sitting next to your own personal jukebox that's playing some long-forgotten rock tune from the 70's (most likely Foriegner) and your waitress calls you "honey."

That, my friends, is the burger experience. You do not eat burgers at stuffy restaurants with stuffier names and french chef who shaves truffles and probably has a white flag tucked into his pants, just in case of war.

Comments

You must eat at expensive diners. Denny's burger comes for under $6, with fires included.

will someone please explain to me what an egg cream is?

I agree with you on the burger thing. With a side order of Vidalia onion rings. Pretentious snobs, the lot of 'em.

P.T. Barnum was right -- there's a sucker born every minute. Now, can I interest anyone in a bridge I have for sale?

Ahhh fond memories of my first trip to the States, and my first 'proper' burger. Got me salivating.

Ohh yes and what is chocolate egg cream (is that like custard?)...

Great, had lunch and now I'm hungry again...

Chocolate egg creams are the absolute best thirst quencher you could ask for. Its basically chocolate milk with seltzer, but its all in the way its mixed that makes it perfect, with the right amount of foam on top & a small dollop of whipped cream! you gotta have one made at a diner, by an old waitress, who knows her stuff!

or made by our mom, who does make the best ones ever!

"White flag tucked into pants in case of war" HAHAHAHAHAHA!

Real burgers come from the Corner Bistro in NYC's West Village. Best anywhere. Ever. Period.

Corner of West 4th and Jane, and worth the trip from wherever you are. Trust me.

Well, guess I'm having a buffalo burger for lunch today. And the meal will still only run me $6-$7 despite being an "exotic" meat.

I am with you. If I eat a 50 dollar piece of meat, it will be a filet mignon. Only I prefer mine "oscar style" with crab meat, bearnaise sauce and asaparagus. MMMMM.

As far as burgers go, you can get a really good fried onion burger here for $2.50. Add fries and a coke for a total of maybe 5.50. MMMM. Guess what Ill be having for lunch.

I can eat all week long for $50. Wow. Someone better come out and give you a massage while you're eating it, for that much.

You're missing the point, Michele. These $50 burgers come from the most elite crop of cows! Now I'm thinking about a $50 egg cream too...

You know, I've had Kobe beef, and perhaps I'm just spoiled, having lived in Nebraska most of my life, but I can get a better burger or steak from the grocery store down the block. And, it costs me about 1.99/lb.

Plus, what the hell were they thinking, putting a chunk of foie gras and truffles in the burger?? Foie gras and truffles have their place, but NOT on my burger. ish.

I'm a Denny's patty melt man myself. It's been a while since I ate one, but I seem to remember a $5.95 sticker price.

Years ago there was a retired French restaurateur fronm Houston who opened up a roadside diner, and suceeded in selling $20 burgers with a side of caviar to the truckers.

I'm with Tracy. Living in South Dakota, you get used to really good beef. My sister moved to El Paso, and had a helluva tough time finding decent meat. She finally tracked down a good butcher shop, as all the supermarkets had really nasty stuff.

Screw Kobe beef. I'll go over to the Convention Grill in Edina and have a great burger, some really good fries, and a caramel malt. For far less than these elite dorks are paying.

Amen to diner burgers, Michele!

Right on. Having lived in Jersey all my life, I can attest to the simple greatness that is a giant bacon cheeseburger and gravy- or cheese-fries in a smoky NJ diner at 1 AM.

Screw these New York hipsters and their chic $50 burgers. It's like that Seinfeld episode where everyone's eating Snickers bars with forks and knives. Screw 'em.

You left out one all-important component to the ultimate diner experience, Michele.
It needs to be 4am.

In my case, that would be about 4am, on a Friday or Saturday night, at the Majestic. (on Ponce in Atlanta- it is a must in everyone's Atlanta career. Fortunately, i live down the street from it) The place is filled with punks, rockabilly kids, ravers, trendys, strippers from the Clairmont lounge, you name it. The bars and clubs are closed, and it's time to eat and people watch. The diner has been open since 1929, and I think that it still has the original wait staff. (no, really)
Oh, and not a damned truffle-shaving, surrender-monkey, Frenchy in site [sic]. Damn I am hungry now.

Are we going to the diner for lunch today? Just an idea!! Don't know where it came from. Huh, I have this urge to eat some beef - wonder why. So much for a salad today!

The easiest way to improve an ordinary burger is to use one of my bread machine recipes to make excellent bread (or focaccia) to replace the bun. Neutral-flavor buns just don't contribute anything to the experience, eh.

the bun is not neutral if there's American cheese stuck to it. that's my favorite part!

Neutral buns? What the hell? First the French, and now the Swiss are making a move on our burgers?!

The important thing is that you once got kicked out of a diner at 4am while eating a burger. It's a rite of passage for the diner-hamburger crowd.

Kicked out..? Um, no comment.

Actually, the best burger in the city costs $5.95, and is sold by Peter Luger's (the steak house) in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. The fries cost an extra $2, but they're thick cut steak fries. Unfortunately, the burger is only sold at lunch, and the wait can be an hour, even with reservations.

Great. Now all I can think of is a double cheeseburger and a strawberry shake. So much for that salad I planned to have for lunch.

A true Proper 100% Complete Burger has a fried egg on it, in addition to onion, bacon, and cheese.

Oh finally a subject close to my heart. Here in Reno, NV the best burger is the Awful Awful, $3.50 with a huge basket of fries, add a coke and ranch and it is bliss, all in a smokey little diner in the back of a casino.

Most expensive burger I've seen is at the Peninsula Grill in Palo Alto, CA, right down the street. 150 bucks for a Bubbly Burger. 'Course, you do get a bottle of Dom Perignon with it...

Order a deluxe cheeseburger with the works and fries at Jimmy's Diner in Panama City, Florida. It's worth the visit just to hear the waitress, who just called me Hon, yell, "Wimpy, dressed and drugged and a order." Comes dripping with grease. YUM! YUM!

Try sliced jalapenos on a cheeseburger some time. Bet you'll try it again.

BTW, when i was in Southeast Asia, we called it Kobe Caribou. (Thai for water buffalo)

McGuire's Irish Pub in Pensacola has been doing a $100 burger since at least 1977. It comes with caviar (and a 'spensive bottle of somethin', depending on year).